Fragment
Fragments are monsters in the TTM Role Play, Fifth Cycle. They appear in the mortal realm during Overclock, a twenty-fifth hour that occurs every week on the strike of midnight between Sunday and Monday. Season Two expands upon the nature of the Fragments, revealing that they inhabit a separate dimension known as "Sacuro" and that they are capable of multiple levels of evolution. Appearance There is no "default" Fragment appearance. Each one has a vastly different shape, which can range from a long, serpentine being to a towering, shark-like monster. The only thing that they all have in common is that their bodies are made entirely from a substance that Soulformers colloquially refer to as "Evershadow". Because of this, no distinct physical features can be made out on their bodies, although many of them have glowing red lights that could be considered their "eyes". Evolutionary Levels Fragment Standard Fragments are not given a unique name. They operate in a simplistic, instinctive way. Their intelligence is extremely limited, and as such they are either completely aggressive or self-defensive. Inner Fragment Inner Fragments are the result of a Soulformer making physical contact with the Evershadow from a Fragment's body. In Season Two, it is revealed that this is how Fragments "reproduce". By implanting their victims with some of their own body's matter, they cause the birth of new Fragments within the conscience of their hosts. Many lose their minds to these beings but some, such as Turin O'Dwyer and the Rompecabezas, can retain their sanity and harness the power of their Fragment for their own ends. Inner Fragments tend to possess intelligence that is of an at least equal level to that of their hosts. They tend to embody the same aggressive traits as regular Fragments, all in order to take control of their host's body. While their host is still conscious, it is possible for them to imitate whatever abilities they might have and even take control of their bodies temporarily. It can be assumed that the reason they lose such powers and develop their animalistic natures after taking control of their hosts is because they no longer have anything to mimic the powers of, forcing them to develop new ones on their own. In the case that their host is a Soulformer, then a Rompecabezas is formed. Nyx "Nyx" is a general name given to any evolved Fragment. There are three different subsections of Nyx Fragments, but the term can be applied to any of them. In order to evolve to the Nyx class, a Fragment has to fight and devour its own kind. The powers and abilities of each assimilated Fragment allows the consumer to grow in power, and in time the different wills begin to merge together and lose their senses of self. Should a Fragment manage to retain their willpower it will in time evolve to the Nyx class. If it loses itself to the countless selves it has devoured, however, then its evolution will cease and it will simply fade, becoming part of Sacuro itself. Hypnos A Hypnos is the first level of Nyx evolution. After devouring a certain amount of its own kind, a Fragment's body will expand by a massive amount, taking on a new form composed of numerous pieces of the beings that it has devoured. For this reason, the Hypnos Fragments all resemble misshapen masses of darkness. They are slow, but their power is far beyond any regular Fragment. Because of their power, the Hypnos Fragments are viewed as worthy opponents for the Spirit Society's Administrators and other high-level Soulformers. Thanatos A Thanatos is the result of a Hypnos Fragment continuing to grow in power, eventually gaining enough control over its abilities to shrink them down to a much more compressed level. They generally resemble larger version of animals or objects from the human world, mostly beasts. The Thanatos class marks the first time that a Fragment is able to introduce some degree of colour into its appearance, gradually shedding its Evershadow-covered body. This is a sign of the Fragment evolving into a much more complete being, and with this evolution there comes a vast increase in intelligence as well as power. It is theorised that Fragments of this class are above the level of strength that the Administrators possess. Erebus The Erebus class is a theorised third level of Nyx evolution. Until recently, their existence had not been proven and they were regarded as something of an urban myth amongst Soulformers. In Season Two, it was revealed that Kate Harlow is in fact an Erebus-class Fragment. From this, it is deduced, ironically, that the third level of Fragment evolution sees them adopting a humanoid appearance without any Evershadow markings on their body. The only thing unusual about them is their blood-red eyes. Erebus Fragments have the unusual ability to remain in the human world once Overclock has ended, although how this is possible has not yet been revealed. Similarly, the full extent of their power is not yet known, although if Kate is any indication they seem to possess the ability to telepathically control weaker Fragments, negate attacks from their own kind, and transform into a more animalistic state. Pedazo A Pedazo is a Fragment that has obtained Soulformer powers. They are created naturally when an Inner Fragment consumes a Soulformer host, although Daniel Serras has found a way to artificially engineer them by infusing Fragments with a portion of his own power. A Pedazo has a fairly humanoid appearance, although often they are physically misshapen in some way, such as being oversized or having distorted limbs. Like the general path of Fragment evolution itself, the closer they are to the human shape, the more powerful they are. How much Evershadow they possess on their bodies is also an indication of their strength. Those with only a few parts of their body tend to be much stronger than those who have most of their form covered. In addition to all of the usual Fragment powers, a Pedazo also has access to a Soulform. Unlike a human Soulformer, a physical being who transforms by merging temporarily with the power of their souls, the Pedazo transformation involves merging their humanoid bodies with their original Fragment bodies. Again, the more humane the transformation is, the more powerful it tends to be. For example, Ristar Zaphry is ranked as the tenth strongest Diamante, and his Soulform resembles a gigantic fly, whereas Rena d'Coifuege is ranked Sixth, and her more humane Soulform merely adds wings and covers her body in a black flame. Although there are hundreds of Pedazo, including the elite Twelve Diamantes, only 88 of them are officially numbered. These numbered Pedazo belong to specific squads, with the Diamante unit being the most important of them. In addition, each numbered Pedazo has a Soulform based on one of the 88 constellations. Diamantes The Diamantes are Daniel Serras' "Suit of Diamonds", sometimes referred to as his personal guard. They are a hand-picked elite unit of unit of the most powerful twelve Pedazo. With the exception of Achten, and possibly Rena, all of its members were at some level of the Nyx class before being transformed into Pedazo. They are the strongest of all the Pedazo, and each one possesses a unique power given to them by Daniel himself. Rompecabezas A Rompecabezas is the term given to a Soulformer who struggles with an Inner Fragment. Because of the beast fighting to take control of their body from within, they isolate themselves from society out of fear for their abilities and constantly train themselves in order to hone them. Because there is no "cure" for their condition, their goal is to keep their bodies and souls in a state of near-perfect condition until they finally suppress their inner monsters. It is indicated that at one point there were many more of them, and that Unlucky Number Five is in some way responsible for their creation, although how and why are not known. As well as having all of their Soulformer powers, a Rompecabezas can also temporarily tap into their Fragment's power by donning Evershadow "armour", which augments all of their attributes and allows them to use some of the regular Fragment powers, such as Sombra. However, there is a limit to how long their can maintain this armour for, as being changed for too long can result in the increase in power shattering their own bones at best and their Fragment gaining control over their bodies at worst. Powers & Abilities Phasing All Fragments possess the ability to shift between Sacuro and the human world during Overclock. Assimilation & Corruption Likewise, all Fragments possess the power to assimilate matter into their own beings to increase their strength as well as the power to place their own matter within living beings in order to asexually reproduce. In this way, the Fragment species as a whole may be likened to a virus, infecting hosts and attacking them from the inside until their forms are entirely taken over. Sombra Sombra (Spanish for "Shade") is the most used offensive technique of evolved Fragments. Although it always manifests as an energy beam, each one tends to be different in coloration, range or effect. Severiano, for instance, can fire a highly concentrated ray whereas Arri's manifests as a widespread blast, and Rena's can be merged with the fire she generates to improve its offensive power. Soulform Pedazos can assume a Soulform. This involves combining elements of their original Fragment body with their humanoid one, creating something akin to a demihuman form. The more humane each one appears to be, the more powerful it is. Within their Soulform, Pedazo have access to all of their standard Fragment abilities along with special techniques based on their new form. For example, Rena can use her wings to fly while Achten focuses his mimicry powers to create a stronger imitation of whatever he happens to be fighting against. Trivia * The Fragment world, "Sacuro", is an anagram of the Spanish word "Oscura". In addition, many other Spanish words are used for terms relating to the Pedazo. The use of Spanish words and phrases is down to Seraphim Swordmaster's fascination with the language. Deceit x Justice similarly uses Spanish words for some of its in-game terms and locations. * The Nyx class, and its three subsections, are all named after Greek deities. They were named as such because Seraphim Swordmaster did not know any Spanish words that might be appropriate for them at the time. * The concept of the Pedazo has been likened by Cudpug Organisation XIII from the Kingdom Hearts series. However, whereas the Nobodies might be considered sympathetic due to their plight to regain human hearts and feelings, it is made abundantly clear that the Fragments view these things with utter disdain. As such, what drives them is unknown.